Questions tagged [safety]
Riding safely, safety equipment, and safe places to ride.
536 questions
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Cycling traffic signs and rules in Germany
I'm over 30 and have just started cycling in real traffic, my first experience, as I have only ever ridden as a child in parks and such. I live in a university town in the state of Baden-Württemberg ...
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When accompanying children on roads - ahead, beside or behind?
When accompanying children (in my case roughly in the 5 to 9 range) on a moderately busy (by rural standards) road on our commute to their school I'm sometimes ahead, sometimes beside (at least the ...
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What does a flashing yellow arrow traffic signal mean?
While bike commuting in an urban setting, I've started noticing that some intersections have flashing yellow turn signals during part of the light cycle. What does this mean? If I am on my bike in the ...
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Can the extreme heat from powder coating influence frame integrity of older bikes?
I just got an older frame powder coated. The shop that I took it to doesn't specialize in bikes. They mainly do industrial grade powder coating and perhaps a car wheel here and there, so I wouldn't ...
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How far do I “pull over” in a bike lane?
If I am riding down a marked bike lane on a road which is adjacent to the curb, and I need to stop for a very short time (e.g. to adjust something, turn on lights, or drink some water), how far should ...
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How could I have avoided this accident?
On Sunday I wanted to use my free day and I planned to do a half-day ride with my mountain bike. The weather wasn't really good, but at least it wasn't raining as the days before.
I rode up a ...
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Helmet Safety Standards Canada
I am looking at buying a helmet meeting ASTM F 2040, CPSC and EN 1078 safty requirements. Are these reasonable standards and will they protect my head in an axcident?
Are these standards recognised ...
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Speed wobble safe fall?
What's the best downhill safe fall if you're getting a lot of speed wobble, or you're on a really rocky course and lose control?
I noticed a lot of people try to slide the bike down to its side, but ...
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Enhancing brake force with steel rims in wet conditions?
I currently own an old racing bike, that still has ripped steel rims and a side pull caliper brake. The braking power is acceptable when the street is dry, but as soon as it gets wet (even morning dew)...
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What do you do when a bus stops in front of you?
When a double decker bus stops in front of you, what do you do? Is it safe to attempt to overtake the bus?
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Should I ring my bell before going around corners?
I'm in a town in Bavaria, Germany and the local custom with the more dangerous corners is to honk a horn or ring a bell. Will this actually make me safer?
Currently I am cycling in a half-urban ...
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Do cyclists make safer drivers?
Is there any research that suggests cyclists are safer drivers than drivers who don't cycle? Is there evidence to suggest the opposite?
Please remember this is not a discussion. Please include ...
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Urban Cycling Safety Innovations
Portland, Oregon is one of several U.S. cities with a progressive bicycling culture. A couple of innovations the city has implemented are "bike boxes" and "sharrows".
Bike boxes are road markings ...
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What is the best Anti-Pollution Mask?
I bike everyday in Paris and I am looking for a mask with a particulates filter.
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What are the reasons for and against wearing a bicycle helmet?
This is a tricky question to ask correctly. One attempt has already been closed as subjective and argumentative. There is no one correct answer, for sure. However, there are interesting reasons that I ...
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When or how often should I replace my bike helmet?
I’ve fallen a couple times, but no serious damage is visible on the helmet except for a couple divots here and there.
Should I consistently be replacing my helmet after a certain amount of time? ...
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What does this warning symbol on my pannier bag mean?
I bought a pannier bag which attaches to the rear rack with 3 quick-releases. Each quick-release has a sticker on it:
What does this symbol mean? My guess would be something like "don't hit this with ...
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What are the features that I should seek in cycling glasses?
I am seeking eye protection for cycling. I don't know if I should buy glasses or goggles.
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What should I look for when purchasing a helmet?
I dont actually own a cycling helmet, but I'm thinking its probably a good idea to get one!
I want to buy one from the internet (mainly because its cheaper than stores), but what do I need to look ...
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Are 2-way bike lanes safe?
For this question, I'm referring to bike lanes of the type shown here:
To me they seem like a really bad idea. Firstly, one of the lanes is going against traffic. In this instance, the cars ...
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What hand signals are there for communicating with others when cycling in a group?
Recently I took a hit from behind. Fortunately it was just my friend's bike rather than one of those large-boxes-for-one-person. I was partly to blame because I failed to indicate that we were slowing ...
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How to cope with being rattled by the wake of a fast car?
There's one long road that I bike on that has a decent bike lane, but the speed limit for cars is 50 mph. Needless to say, they drive 60+. Often I find myself being shaken or rattled by the turbulent ...
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Should I be concerned about new helmet laws?
In Australia there was recently a change to to bicycle helmet standards as outlined in AS/NZS 2063:2008.
Basically, helmets complying to the 1996 version of the standard will soon become illegal to ...
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Water safety during touring?
This question raised a new sub-problem of which I was not at all aware of.
I carry a heater to boil the water before I drink it but I am unsure whether it removes all dirt from water. Please, note ...
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How to practice jumping over cars with disc brakes and SPD shoes?
This question here raises a sub-question, to avoid accidents. I am looking for some safe ways to practice jumping over cars. I use SPD shoes and disc brakes because I have noticed that I can burst ...
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Safe countries for touring (without having to take public trasport all the time) in EU? [closed]
I discussed today foreign ambulance guys and they told stories about sliced bicyclists in an ex-communist country. The country in itself is not special but rather the fact that it lacks proper roads ...
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Is fluorescent clothing effective?
I read recently that fluorescent clothing was not effective at all at night. If this is the case, how effective is it during the day, and should I stop buying tops that are fluorescent to use on my ...
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Which footwear is the safest for summer cycling?
This morning I could not find my training shoes. So, I used my sandals. I found that the sandals not only kept my feet cool but there was no pedal slippage as I had expected. The more I think about it,...
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Different tyre width (front and back)
Out of necessity, I had to put an 1.26" (32mm) rear tyre on my bike where the front tyre is only 1.1" (28mm) wide (and the bike came with 1.1" tyres when I bought it). Are there any advantages or ...
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Can I jump from small heights on my bicycle?
I have recently bought a Merida Matts 40-D bicycle. I didn't buy it for extreme sports, rather for a recreational cycling, etc, but as I'm only 22 years old, it's too tempting to jump down from small ...
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Hand signaling while decelerating
I'm nervous about hand signalling (taking a hand off the handle bar) while I'm decelerating: I'm worried that my body being pushed forward will act on the one remaining hand and change the angle of ...
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Back wheel skidding out
On my cycle to work this morning I noticed my back wheel was skidding out as I was going up a fairly steep hill. It did it enough that I thought I'd probably gotten a flat, however upon inspection it ...
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Night Riding With Heavy Traffic
I live in a fairly urban setting and there are plenty of cars around when it gets past dark. The main point of having a bicycle light/backlight (I contend) is not for you to see, its for others to see ...
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How do you know when you need to add more air in the tires?
How much air is too little and you should add more for the safety and ease of your bike ride?
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How can I tell if a helmet will be comfortable before buying?
Barring taking a helmet on a 50-mile ride before buying it:
Some kinds of chin straps, for example, won't stay tight, and some kinds of cages aren't comfortable no matter how I adjust them. What ...
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Passing cars on the right, and later merging into their lane
My commute takes me along a fairly busy road, with 4 lanes of traffic and parked cars along most of it. There are no bike lanes, but in some places, it's wide enough that I can easily pass traffic on ...
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